tZERO Group, Inc., a blockchain-powered multi-asset infrastructure provider, announced that its broker-dealer subsidiary's alternative trading system can now facilitate trading of crypto asset securities directly custodied by customers in their own self-hosted wallets. This development enables transactions in those securities to be settled directly by customers on-chain, representing a critical advancement in tZERO's convergence strategy between traditional finance and decentralized finance ecosystems.
The capability offers an additional bridge between traditional finance and the broader decentralized finance ecosystem for tZERO's customers and API partners. By supporting integrated self-hosted wallets, tZERO enables customers to interact with its regulated alternative trading system without relinquishing control of their private keys or assets to middleman custody. As one of only two broker-dealers that have been custodying securities directly on-chain in its own wallets, tZERO will continue to offer omnibus or individual wallet custody alongside self-hosted wallet connectivity for investors who prefer broker-dealer custody for operational, regulatory, or other reasons.
Alan Konevsky, CEO of tZERO, stated that the company is becoming connective tissue for market participants across all vectors of Web3. By enabling custody and settlement via self-hosted wallets, tZERO provides optionality that the market demands while pointing toward compliant and transparent marketplaces that rely on self-regulating technology and asset sovereignty. These services will be available to institutional API partners who elect to use tZERO's infrastructure rather than building their own, which represents significant operational challenges even in more permissive regulatory environments. tZERO is opening new pathways to DeFi connectivity and interoperability for the marketplace.
A central pillar of this feature is custodial optionality. tZERO's brokerage platform now supports a hybrid approach for custody, recognizing that different market participants have varying preferences. Customers can choose to directly custody their own assets on-chain using self-hosted wallets or opt for broker-dealer custody, allowing for seamless movement between traditional finance and the decentralized ecosystem.
Vanessa Savino, Chief Legal Officer of tZERO, added that this new capability demonstrates the company's commitment to advancing innovation responsibly while working with regulators. Regulatory clearance to be interoperable with user self-hosted wallets promotes crypto asset programmability, portability, and transparency in tZERO's brokerage ecosystem. tZERO plans to integrate key management and wallet infrastructure providers in the first half of 2026 to support secure, compliant settlement workflows involving self-hosted wallets.
The development represents a significant step toward what tZERO describes as the endstate of financial revolution: compliant and transparent marketplaces that rely on self-regulating technology and asset sovereignty to deliver a cross-asset, cross-border, and cross-protocol, AI-enabled investing experience. This move toward sovereign and self-regulating technology-based financial services could reshape how institutional and retail investors interact with digital assets, potentially accelerating adoption of blockchain technology in regulated financial markets while maintaining the decentralization principles that underpin cryptocurrency ecosystems.
